Childcare @ The Louisiana, Bristol, 18/10/2018

Nun-nahnah-nun-nah-nun-nah. We challenge anyone to watch Childcare live and leave without an assortment of melodies wedged so far down their eardrum, no amount of cotton buds will ever help. What sounds like an uncomfortable experience is actually a standout one if the band's gig at Bristol venue The Louisiana is anything to go by.

Propelled by the release of the Luckyucker EP a few months ago, Childcare are at the tale-end of a headline UK tour which has seen the heights of London and the depths of Middlesborough. They're also approaching the end of a year that's been great for their reputation in general, thanks to press coverage far and wide. You can tell. The gig is sold out and the electricity in the air lasts throughout. There's a sense of community too: fans are familiar with in-jokes told through sideways glances and muttered quips from the stage, which could be alienating in a bigger venue, but complements the close quarters of The Louisiana well.

.

The promoters have turned on the air conditioning, which is always a relief, but it doesn't take long for the room to overheat thanks to the hip jiggling antics of frontman and real-life babysitter Ed Cares. The music is utterly and undeniably infectious. Storming through "Big Man", new single "Man Down (King Kong Rules)" and "Magazine", every song is a hit, and that's what makes success so likely for Childcare. They're a singles band, but the prospect of a full album is enough to make even an earnest fan drop in a dead faint of excitement. They're also original, swaying somewhere between the buoyancy of dual vocal Britpop and the nonchalance of fuzzy grunge.

Before the evening's done, Childcare prove they have the songs for a full length with unreleased track, "Bamboo" - for which bassist Emma Topolski takes to the microphone. The accomplished setlist lasts for over an hour, despite their back catalogue being fairly limited to date, and for once the chants of 'one more song' sound sincere. We want a lot more than one more song.